India Develops Anti-Missile Weapons

The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) in India has been developing a series of directed energy weapons (DEW) to improve the country's anti-ballistic missile capability.

The DEW is a sophisticated weapon capable of destroying a target by emitting and transferring the energy to a target in an aimed direction.

DRDO Laser Science and Technology Centre director Anil Kumar Maini said a DEW laser weapon could generate high-energy pulses of 25kW, capable enough to destroy a ballistic missile in its terminal phase within the range of 7km.

He said a gas dynamic laser-based DEW which can be flexibly deployed by a moving vehicle, is also being developed.

The Indian laser weapons would serve in three platforms such as the air force's transport planes, fighters and the navy's destroyers and submarines, according to the Xinhua news agency.

India conducted two anti-ballistic missile interception tests by launching anti-aircraft missiles during the first half of the year.